Bring on the tough stuff - there’s not just one right answer.
- In what ways is this a typical love poem? And on the other hand, how does it distinguish itself? What is unique about the speaker's love?
- What do you make of all the darkness in this poem, the suggestions of something sinister?
- Why do you think Neruda grouped this poem under the section heading "Morning" (as opposed to "Afternoon," "Evening," or "Night")?
- Why does the speaker start off by saying the ways he doesn't love this woman? What is the effect of this negation?
- How do you imagine the addressee (the woman the speaker loves)? Does she love him in the same way that he loves her? What clues do we have to answer this question?